Avicularia juruensis

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Avicularia juruensis
Avicularia juruensis female morphotype 2 ZK120.jpg
Female, morphotype 2
Avicularia juruensis male morphotype 2 ZK121.jpg
Male, morphotype 2
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Mygalomorphae
Family: Theraphosidae
Genus: Avicularia
Species:
A. juruensis
Binomial name
Avicularia juruensis
Avicularia juruensis distribution ZK127.jpg
Red circles = morphotype 1, blue squares = morphotype 2 [2]
Synonyms [1]
  • Avicularia urticansSchmidt, 1994

Avicularia juruensis is a species of spider in the family Theraphosidae, found in South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Brazil). Avicularia urticans was brought into synonymy in 2017. [1] [2] It has been given the English name Amazonian pink toe spider. [3] Under the synonym Avicularia urticans, it is also known as the Peruvian pinktoe tarantula. [4] It is a large mygalomorph spider, with a maximum body length over 30 mm (1.2 in) and the longest fully extended leg about 60 mm (2.4 in). Like other species in the genus Avicularia , specimens under this name are sold as pets, although their identity has not been confirmed by taxonomic studies. [2]

Contents

Description

The adult female Avicularia juruensis has a carapace about 19 mm long and 17 wide, and an abdomen about 24 mm long and 17 mm wide. The adult male has a smaller body, with a carapace about 15 mm long and wide, and notably shorter and narrower abdomen, about 17 mm long and 12 mm wide. The fourth leg is slightly longer than the first, both being longer than the middle two. The first leg was measured as 53 mm in a female and 56 mm in a male, the fourth leg as 58 mm in a female and 60 mm in a male. The eyes are arranged in two rows of four, the front (anterior) row being slightly curved forwards and the back (posterior) row slightly curved backwards. The abdomen carries type II urticating hairs (setae), up to about 1 mm long in males and 0.7 mm long in females. [2]

The mature female has two long, well separated spermathecae, expanded in the middle to about 1.5 times the width of the end portions. The mature male has a globous palpal bulb with a small subtegulum and a well developed protrusion on the tegulum. The embolus forming the tip of the palpal bulb is about 5 mm long. The forward facing side (prolateral) of the first leg has an unbranched protrusion (apophysis) on the tibia. [2]

As with other species of Avicularia, juveniles have distinctively different colour patterns to adults. Juveniles of A. juruensis lack any kind of metallic sheen, have black tarsi contrasting with the rest of the leg which is lighter, and also have a reddish upper surface to the abdomen with a central longitudinal black stripe and separated transverse black stripes. Adults lose the stripes on the abdomen and gain a metallic sheen. There are two colour forms or "morphotypes". Morphotype 1 has a golden and pink sheen, a whitish carapace and whitish leg rings and longer light brown hairs evenly distributed over shorter darker hairs. Males appear to lack whitish tips to the hairs on the upper surface of the abdomen. Morphotype 2 has an intense purple sheen and yellower leg rings. Females have long reddish brown hairs on the front and sides of the upper abdomen over shorter darker hairs. Males have white-tipped hairs evenly distributed on the upper abdomen. Morphotype 1 is more commonly found in Brazil, morphotype 2 in Ecuador and Peru, but this is not an absolute difference. Morphotype 1 is the form previously known as A. urticans. [2]

Taxonomy

Avicularia juruensis was first described by Cândido Firmino de Mello-Leitão in 1923, based on specimens from Juruá in Brazil. The specific name is based on the location in which the species was found. In 1994, Gunter Schmidt separately described Avicularia urticans, based on specimens from Peru. In 2017, Caroline Fukushima and Rogério Bertani synonymized the two, saying that A. urticans was indistinguishable from A. juruensis, although there were some differences in colour. [2]

The name A. juruensis has been misapplied to specimens of Avicularia rufa from the Brazilian states of Mato Grosso and Rondônia, south of the area in which A. jurensis is considered to occur. Apart from differences in the male and female genitalia, A. juruensis has paler leg rings, more uniformly coloured hairs (setae) on the legs, and legs I and IV more-or-less equal in length, whereas A. rufa has bright yellow leg rings, leg hairs with a whitish apex, and leg I shorter than leg IV. [2]

Behaviour

Detailed studies of the life-cycle and habits of most Avicularia species have been described as "practically nonexistent". [2] An adult female Avicularia juruensis was seen on the side of a palm tree feeding on a greater sac-winged bat (Saccopteryx bilineata). In Peru, the species has been known to swim across large rivers. [2]

Distribution and habitat

Avicularia juruensis is found in central South America, in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Brazil, where it is found in the states of states of Amazonas, Acre and Pará. Like other members of the genus, it is arboreal, building silken retreats. [2]

Related Research Articles

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<i>Avicularia</i> Genus of spiders

Avicularia is a genus of the family Theraphosidae containing various species of arboreal tarantulas. The genus is native to Panama, the Caribbean and tropical South America. Each species in the genus has very distinguishable pink foot pads.

<i>Brachypelma</i> Genus of spiders

Brachypelma is a genus of spiders in the family Theraphosidae (tarantulas). They may have bodies up to 6 cm long with legs of similar or greater lengths. Some species have brightly colored legs, with red or orange marks and rings.

<i>Brachypelma hamorii</i> Species of arachnid

Brachypelma hamorii is a species of tarantula found in Mexico. It has been confused with B. smithi; both have been called Mexican redknee tarantulas. Many earlier sources referring to B. smithi either do not distinguish between the two species or relate to B. hamorii. B. hamorii is a terrestrial tarantula native to the western faces of the Sierra Madre Occidental and Sierra Madre del Sur mountain ranges in the Mexican states of Colima, Jalisco, and Michoacán. The species is a large spider, adult females having a total body length over 50 mm (2 in) and males having legs up to 75 mm (3 in) long. Mexican redknee tarantulas are a popular choice for enthusiasts. Like most tarantulas, it has a long lifespan.

<i>Avicularia avicularia</i> Species of spider

Avicularia avicularia, sometimes called the pinktoe tarantula, is a species of tarantula native from Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana and Trinidad and Tobago to Peru, Bolivia and Brazil. This species is sometimes called the Guyana pinktoe, or South American pinktoe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antilles pinktoe tarantula</span> Species of spider

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<i>Neischnocolus</i> Genus of spiders

Neischnocolus is a genus of spiders in the family Theraphosidae. It was first described in 1925 by Petrunkevitch. The genus Ami was separately described in 2008, but was later discovered to be a junior synonym of Neischnocolus. Species are native to Central America and northern South America.

<i>Theraphosa apophysis</i> Species of spider

Theraphosa apophysis is a species of spider in the family Theraphosidae, found in Venezuela and Brazil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skeleton tarantula</span> Species of spider

The skeleton tarantula, Ephebopus murinus, is a species of spider belonging to the family Theraphosidae (tarantulas), sub-family Aviculariinae. A New World species, it is native to several South American countries. Its common name is derived from the skeleton-like markings on its legs.

<i>Pachistopelma bromelicola</i> Species of spider

Pachistopelma bromelicola is a species of tarantula, contained within the Aviculariinae subfamily. It is endemic to Brazil.

<i>Pachistopelma rufonigrum</i> Species of spider

Pachistopelma rufonigrum is a species of theraphosid, contained within the Aviculariinae subfamily. It is endemic to Brazil.

<i>Avicularia purpurea</i> Species of spider

Avicularia purpurea, also called purple tree tarantula, Ecuadorian purple tarantula or Ecuador purple pinktoe, is a species of spider belonging to the family Theraphosidae (tarantulas).

<i>Pterinopelma</i> Genus of spiders

Pterinopelma is a genus of Brazilian tarantulas that was first described by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1901. As of May 2020 it contains three species, found in Brazil: P. felipeleitei, P. sazimai, and P. vitiosum. It was removed from the synonymy of Eupalaestrus in 2011.

<i>Caribena</i> Genus of spiders

Caribena is a genus of spiders in the family Theraphosidae (tarantulas), found in the Antilles. The two species accepted as of March 2017 were formerly placed in Avicularia. Apart from a different distribution – Avicularia species are found in mainland South and Central America – Caribena is distinguished by having longer and thinner type II urticating hairs in a conspicuous patch on the upper surface of the abdomen. Males also have a differently shaped palpal bulb.

<i>Avicularia variegata</i> Species of spider

Avicularia variegata is a species of spider in the family Theraphosidae found in Venezuela and Brazil. Previously described as Avicularia avicularia variegata, it is synonymous with Avicularia bicegoi.

<i>Avicularia rufa</i> Species of spider

Avicularia rufa is a species of spider in the family Theraphosidae. Specimens from the Brazilian states of Mato Grosso and Rondônia have regularly been misidentified as Avicularia juruensis. One difference is the vivid yellow rings on the legs of A. rufa compared to the paler rings of A. juruensis.

<i>Caribena laeta</i> Species of spider

Caribena laeta otherwise known as the Puerto Rican Pink Toe Tarantula is a species of spider in the family Theraphosidae, found in the US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and Cuba, the last dubiously according to Caroline Fukushima and Rogério Bertani in 2017. It was first described by Carl Ludwig Koch in 1842 under the name Mygale laeta.

Tliltocatl andrewi is a possible species of spider in the family Theraphosidae (tarantulas). The World Spider Catalog regards it as a nomen dubium. Only the male has been described and its distribution is unknown.

<i>Tliltocatl kahlenbergi</i> Species of spider

Tliltocatl kahlenbergi is a species of spider in the family Theraphosidae (tarantulas), found in Mexico.

<i>Tliltocatl</i> Genus of tarantulas

Tliltocatl is a genus of North American tarantulas that was split off from Brachypelma in 2020. They are also large burrowing tarantulas, but don't have the striking red leg markings of Brachypelma species. A female T. vagans can grow up to 50 mm (2.0 in) long and legs can get as long as 55 mm (2.2 in). They are found predominantly in Mexico, with some species native to Central America. The name is derived from two Nahuatl words, "tlil", meaning "black", and "tocatl", meaning "spider". Habitat destruction and collection for the pet trade has led to this and Brachypelma to be protected under International Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species rules, beginning with B. smithi.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Taxon details Avicularia juruensis (Mello-Leitão, 1923)", World Spider Catalog, Natural History Museum Bern, retrieved 2017-03-11
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Fukushima, C.S. & Bertani, R. (2017), "Taxonomic revision and cladistic analysis of Avicularia Lamarck, 1818 (Araneae, Theraphosidae, Aviculariinae) with description of three new aviculariine genera", ZooKeys (659): 1–185, Suppl. 1–5, doi: 10.3897/zookeys.659.10717 , PMC   5345366 , PMID   28331414
  3. ↑ Ayroza, G.; Ferreira, I.L.C.; Sayegh, R.S.R.; Tashima, A.K. & da Silva Junior, P.I. (2012), "Juruin: an antifungal peptide from the venom of the Amazonian Pink Toe spider, Avicularia juruensis, which contains the inhibitory cysteine knot motif", Frontiers in Microbiology, 3 (324): 324, doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2012.00324 , PMC   3437525 , PMID   22973266
  4. ↑ "Peruvian Pinktoe tarantula (Avicularia urticans)", Tarantulas of the World, archived from the original on 2017-03-12, retrieved 2017-03-11
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